This invention pertains to an emergency belt or line kit intended for temporary replacement of broken belts or lines, such as are used with various belt-pulley assemblies, or maintenance of other belts or lines, such as antenna guy lines.
Quite often, it is desirable to temporarily replace a broken belt, such as those used in certain types of belt-pulley assemblies and the like. In the past, attempts to effect these temporary replacements or reconnections of belts have included connectors having an elongate shank with a plurality of hooks axially and circumferentially disposed thereon. Connection of the ends of the belt is accomplished by inserting opposite ends of the connector into the tubular ends of the replacement belt.
Another type of prior art connector comprises a shank having threaded end portions, and which joins tubular ends of a belt or line by having the threaded end portions threadly received therein.
In order to increase the holding forces on the ends of the replacement emergency belt, connectors having multiple cutting heads have been used. This type of connector includes a shank having a plurality of, and usually two, axially spaced enlarged heads or barbs on each end thereof. The heads or barbs are of equal size, each having the same maximum outer transverse dimension, and are forcibly inserted into the tubular ends to effect the temporary replacement of a single belt, or the reconnection of ends of separate belts or lines.
Several problems or disadvantages exist with each of the above described prior art connectors. Those connectors utilizing a plurality of hooks to join the tubular ends together are undesirable when being manually inserted in that the possibility exists that the user may be cut when attempting forcibly to insert one end of the connector into a tubular end. Moreover, the manufacture of a connector having a plurality of hooks axially and circumferentially disposed thereon is not inexpensive.
Prior art connectors which have threaded end portions are generally difficult to fully insert manually into the unthreaded tubular ends of a belt or line made of an extremely hard elastomeric material. Further, such threaded connectors may tend to back-off under the influence of axially applied forces. This is particularly undesirable when such a connector is used to replace a belt in a belt-pulley assembly, since any loosening of the belt will render it ineffectual in transferring rotary motion.
A disadvantage with connectors having a plurality of enlarged heads or barbs on each end, wherein the heads or barbs are of equal size, is that it is extremely difficult, to manually insert the second and subsequent heads or barbs after the first head or barb has been inserted in a tubular end. This is because the connector can no longer be inserted into the tube with the sharp edge of the head leading as is done with the first head. Again, the problem of fully inserting this type of connector is magnified when the tubular end of the belt or line is made of an extremely hard elastomeric material. Of course, having to install the replacement belt under emergency conditions after a breakdown on the highway further compounds the difficulty of fully inserting the connector.
In addition to the above problems and disadvantages, non of the above-described prior art connectors are particularly suitable for use in belt-pulley assemblies having at least one pulley of small radius. As that portion of the belt or line including the connector passes about the small radius pulley, the applied axial force tends to become a bending moment on the connector, thereby causing it to back-off, and possibly to eventually become disconnected from the belt.
In attempting to overcome the above problem associated with small pulleys and the like, some prior art connectors have been made of a flexible material so as to accommodate turns of small radii. Although an improvement over rigid connectors, these flexible connectors do not wear as well as those made of a rigid material, and consequently fatigue is a serious problem related to connectors made of flexible materials. Moreover, if the tubular end is made of an extremely hard material, and most are, it is extremely difficult to fully insert manually a flexible connector since it will tend to flex or bend when force is applied axially against it.